Mr. Showbiz: Celine Dion at Caesars Palace
Celine’s back. After more than a three year hiatus where she toured 96 countries, Celine Dion recently returned to Las Vegas to renew her residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The pop diva puts on a performance reminiscent of Old Vegas-style shows from Frank Sinatra to usher in her second era as a Vegas headliner. If you want to be surprised when you see the show, stop reading now and purchase tickets HERE. For more of an overall show review, continue.
She opens with a cover of Journey’s “Open Arms” while wearing a shimmering gold and white Armani gown only to have the curtains open… and open… and open, changing from blue to white, then drop in dramatic fashion to reveal her 31-piece orchestra stretched across the stage.
Another dramatic moment comes when she sings a duet … with herself. Dion starts on stage singing “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” and then appears in the audience to sing with herself. Later, she sings “Overjoyed” with Stevie Wonder. "Was that neat or what?" Dion asks as a hologram of Wonder fades from the stage.
High points in the show come during a James Bond-themed number with her son Rene-Charles in a shadowboxing chase scene. Dion rises above the stage in a dazzling black gown with a slit up to there singing “Goldfinger.” Her tribute to Bond continued with “Nobody Does It Better” and “Live and Let Die.”
Later, she sings Jacques Brel’s "Ne Me Quitte Pas" (Don't Leave Me) in French. During the emotionally charged song, tears welled in her eyes.
Dion sings enough of her hits such as “The Reason,” “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” “I’m Your Lady,” and “Beauty and the Beast” to keep her loyal fans satisfied, but introduced covers of hits from Ike and Tina Turner, Ella Fitzgerald complete with scatting and Billy Joel’s lullaby “Goodnight My Angel with home video of her three children.
A dedication to Michael Jackson starts with three cellists playing “Smooth Criminal” and “Billie Jean” with Dion coming out in a Givenchy gold jacket and leather pants to sing “Man in the Mirror” with a crowd of snapping backup singers. She remembered seeing Jackson perform when she was 15 and decided she needed to sing in English like he did.
She ended the show with an encore performance of “My Heart Will Go On,” a song she admitted that she considered opening the show with to “get it over with.” Her husband and manager Rene Angelil convinced her otherwise. "He looked at me and said, 'I don't think so.'"
During the show, Dion goes through eight outfit changes, highlighting designers such as Armani Prive, Versace, Lanvin, Elie Saab, Givenchy, J. Mendel and Marchesa, all red carpet favorites.
Her last show lasted five years and nearly every performance sold out. This time around, experts predict a three percent increase in tourism with her five-octave-range voice in town. Under her new contract, Dion plans to perform 70 shows a year. Tickets for her next stint of shows can be purchased HERE.
Tickets start at $55.
Caesars Palace, 3570 Las Vegas Blvd. S.; 1-877-4CELINE
